A state trooper accused of having sexual communications with the teenage daughter of another FHP employee has been fired and charged with soliciting sex from a minor. And now an internal probe by the Orange County Sheriff's Office has targeted the trooper's ex-wife after she was accused of trying to intimidate the teen's mother. James E. Gilbert was a trooper for more than 15 years when he was arrested Dec. 4 on 10 counts of solicitation of a minor via a computer. The Florida Highway Patrol terminated him the next day. Gilbert is accused of having sexual conversations and text messages with a 17-year-old.

Editor's note: The charges against Bryan Lockley were dropped. *** A Liberty High School teacher was arrested Tuesday after being fired Friday for allegedly soliciting sex from a student in a series of text messages, the Osceola County Sheriff's Office said. Bryan Lockley, a girls basketball coach, was charged with one count of solicitation of a minor for sexual activity via an electronic device, records state. "When do you turn 18 so you can come to my side of town and party with me?"

FORT LAUDERDALE -- A 26-year-old salesman has been charged with soliciting sex on the Internet from an undercover detective posing as a teenage girl, police said. Mohamed Ghanie of Royal Palm Beach was arrested at a McDonald's in Plantation Tuesday by Broward Sheriff's Office Detective Joe Vella. Vella is part of a task force trying to prevent people from preying on children through the Internet. It has made nearly 40 arrests this year. Vella and someone using the screen name "MG21" met in an America Online chat room on Aug. 8.

A murder for hire plot may have been uncovered by Carrollton police who arrested the husband of a woman shot in the face, August 18th. 52-year-old, John Franklin Howard has been charged with solicitation of capital murder and was being held on a 1-million-dollar bond. His wife, Nancy Howard, was shot in the face in her garage after returning home. The bullet went through her left eye and lodged just above her right lung. She was in a coma for several days but is expected to make a full recovery.

A Republican state senator was charged early Wednesday with soliciting an undercover police officer who was posing as a prostitute. Drew Nixon, 37, was released on his own recognizance and refused to comment when he was approached outside the police station. According to court records, Nixon offered the officer $35 to perform oral sex. A Municipal Court judge rejected a claim from the undercover officer, Christine Shelton, who filed an affidavit saying Nixon was illegally carrying a firearm.

A city councilman was arrested and charged with soliciting sexual favors from a woman seeking his help.Bernie Alimenti was charged Friday with one count of unlawful compensation, a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison and $5,000 in fines.The charge alleges Alimenti sought sexual favors from a woman who was living in publicly subsidized housing and wanted to move to a better home.In asking for his help with city housing officials, the woman said Alimenti made sexual advances toward her. Alimenti disputes the accusations that he touched her breasts, lifted her skirt and fondled himself.

EUSTIS - A 62-year-old man arrested on a charge of using his home computer to solicit sex from children is wanted in Pennsylvania on similar charges, authorities said.Deputy sheriffs said that via the Internet, Richard Rollin Rose asked one underage girl in Montgomery County, Pa., for nude pictures of herself and told her how to perform sexual acts ``so she would be ready for him'' when he visited her. The resident of 114 Fruitwood Ave. mailed the girl money on three occasions, police said.

University of Florida sophomore Johnie Church, a returning starter at defensive end, was arrested Friday and charged with soliciting a prostitute in his hometown of Fort Myers.Church was released the same night on his own recognizance. He reported to preseason camp Tuesday with the rest of the Gators' veterans.''I didn't do what I was accused of in Fort Myers, and the facts will prove this out,'' Church, 19, said in a statement.Florida athletic officials said they would wait to see how the case progresses before determining what, if any, action to take against Church.

Former state Rep. Jimmy Charles, who was voted out of office two years ago after being charged with soliciting sex, is strongly considering a bid to win back his House seat.Charles, acquitted of the sex charge several months after he lost the 1994 election, said Thursday he will announce his plans within the next 10 days.However, he already has filed paperwork with state elections officials that would allow him to run for the District 27 seat now held by Rep. Evelyn Lynn.Charles, an Ormond Beach Democrat, said he feels a strong calling to return to the Legislature to finish up work that he began during his first two-year term.

The city's anti-prostitution prosecutor who was charged with soliciting a prostitute said Friday he will still seek re-election, despite calls for his resignation. Circuit Attorney George Peach, who has crusaded against pornography and prostitution, was caught trying to pick up an undercover police officer Tuesday night. He was charged Thursday with soliciting a prostitute, a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail. Two attorneys filed with the Election Board on Friday to challenge him. ''I want the city voters in St. Louis to rule on me,'' Peach said.

A Volusia County elementary teacher resigned Thursday afternoon, one day after she was arrested on North Carolina warrants charging her with solicitation of a child by computer and indecent liberties with a child. Amberlee Evonne Meeker, 28, was arrested at her home in Palm Coast Wednesday afternoon and is being held without bail in the Flagler County Jail. Meeker was arrested on warrants from the Archdale, N.C., Police Department, Flagler County Sheriff's spokeswoman Debra Johnson said.

Daytona Beach Mainland High School's football team is back preparing for its second game of the football season this morning, but it's unclear whether it will have coach John Maronto to help it. Maronto was arrested on a charge of soliciting a prostitute Saturday night in Daytona Beach, police said. CFNews13 reported that the Buccaneers reported for practice this morning at 8 and that before practice, school officials held a team meeting. Details of that meeting were unavailable, as was whether Maronto attended it. The school district will not make a decision about the coach's future until officials meet with Maronto on Tuesday, Volusia County schools spokeswoman Nancy Wait said.

Fred Roberts Sr., a co-owner of a real estate firm in Ocala who is active in state and local politics, was arrested Friday on the charge of soliciting a prostitute, according to the Ocala Star-Banner To read the full report, click here

A state trooper accused of having sexual communications with the teenage daughter of another FHP employee has been fired and charged with soliciting sex from a minor. And now an internal probe by the Orange County Sheriff's Office has targeted the trooper's ex-wife after she was accused of trying to intimidate the teen's mother. James E. Gilbert was a trooper for more than 15 years when he was arrested Dec. 4 on 10 counts of solicitation of a minor via a computer. The Florida Highway Patrol terminated him the next day. Gilbert is accused of having sexual conversations and text messages with a 17-year-old.

DAYTONA BEACH -- Eight men were charged with soliciting a prostitute during an undercover sting Wednesday evening, police said. A female detective posed as a prostitute and walked along Ridgewood Avenue, where men offered her money in exchange for sexual favors, Sgt. Al Tolley said. All the men, who range in age from 20 to 77, were arrested and booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail.

DAYTONA BEACH -- Five men and a 14-year-old were charged with soliciting a prostitute during a sting on Ridgewood Avenue. An undercover female detective, wearing a recording device, posed as a prostitute Friday night, police officials said. Each of the males approached her and offered money in exchange for sexual favors. According to the police report, the Daytona Beach teen offered the detective $25 for sex after asking about her breasts. The teen was charged with misdemeanor solicitation to commit prostitution and taken to the Volusia Regional Juvenile Detention Center.

KISSIMMEE -- Thirty-two men, ranging in age from 21 to 78, have been arrested by deputy sheriffs during a prostitution sting, the Sheriff's Office said. The arrests were part of a special detail last week that also targeted drunken drivers, speeders and people who don't use seat belts. The prostitution sting was conducted in the evening and at night in several places including U.S. Highway 192 in St. Cloud and Orange Blossom Trail. Three undercover female law-enforcement officers posed as prostitutes.